Fiery Heart - My Version
by soccergurl07
Summary: Told from Sydney and Adrian's POV, this is my own version of Fiery Heart. It takes place after Richelle Mead's Indigo Spell (not my version), and it is after the first two chapters of the real Fiery Heart (found online). With Adrian's use of spirit becoming more problematic, and Sydney's battle with what she is becoming, problems arise. Is love even possible? Find out.
1. Worried

**Chapter 1**

Adrian POV

I dropped off the gang, thinking only of Sage and whether or not she knew of the whole divorce of her parents. I honestly didn't know if this would make her feel devastated or tremendously joyous. With her parents, I knew she liked her mom a lot more than her father. Whether or not she wanted them to remain being married, was a whole different story.

But I knew Sage. She wouldn't be worried about herself. She would be worried about everyone else. Her parents, and how they were going to cope. Especially her mom. Then there was her dad, which she probably just hoped he wouldn't hurt anyone in the process. Which brought it all back to her sister, where she would most definitely be worried about.

I got back to my place, checking the time. It was a bit past ten, and I knew that Sydney wouldn't be back for a while still, let alone be asleep at this time. I was going to have to wait it out for a while. Glimpsing over at my oh so friendly looking liquor cabinet, I realized it was about time I had my one designated drink today. With my deal with Sage, I knew that this drink was coming. One drink, usually saved for the end of the day was always something I looked forward to.

Mixing some vodka, along with a bit of juice, I made myself comfy on my stylish, yet affordable, plaid couch. It had to have been the comfiest couch I had ever owned, and it was a bargain when I bought it. Taking a sip of my drink, I felt the alcohol rush down my throat, making my stomach feel all warm and tingly. I sighed a happy sigh. It was a bit sad that a bit of vodka and some orange juice could do this to me, but it wasn't just the tipsy after effects that caused me such joy. It was the fact that alcohol numbed the effects of spirit, therefore making me feel like a normal person, instead of some crazy guy on the verge of losing himself.

Finishing my one designated drink, I glanced back at the liquor cabinet. Shaking, I looked away. I knew I couldn't go back on my word to Sage, she would be disappointed. Especially since she had to give up her ten cups of coffee, and narrow it down to having one a day. I knew this was hard for her too. Plus, there was the fact that I was almost a hundred percent sure she was keeping tab of how much alcohol was in each of my bottles. Not that I blamed her or felt mad about it. It just showed how much she cared.

So instead of divulging in another drink, I took a look through the records that I bought earlier today. This was a great find, even if Sydney thought it was a waste of money and I could have bought an iPod or mp3 and had thousands of songs, I loved the sound that came out of a record. Something real and true about it, I guess.

I smiled, seeing _Journey_. I put it on, and was rewarded with the steady tune of Faithfully. I knew that Sage would probably love this song, if she gave it a try. I honestly think the only songs she knew were like Beethoven or something old and classical like that. I needed to get her acquainted with more modern music. I put that on my to do list. One that was building up due to the fact that I felt the need to do a lot of things with Sydney. Music, eating an entire slice of cheesecake from the cheesecake factory, travelling to the beach on day…seeing her in a bikini, and, umm, so on. The list really did go on and on. I smiled to myself, thinking of the endless possibilities.

Of course, the whole sneaking around thing wasn't helping me accomplish much of the to do list. I usually saw her once a day, for an hour tops. She would be able to sneak over during her free study period, getting permission from Jackie, her mentor witch. Which reminded me, I glanced over at the clock, it was nearly midnight now, and I knew she had to be back from her little witch meeting. I sat comfortably on the couch, and brought the warming feeling of spirit to me. Using spirit, as bad as the side effects were, was so worth it. The feeling of complete and utter warmth and serenity it brought was something beyond what I would ever feel in the real world. Well, apart from being with Sage. But spirit was something else.

I knew she was sleeping. I felt her energy, and in a second, I was in her dreams. In our dream. I made the scene this time, morphing the dream into one of the coliseum in Rome. I knew she liked architecture, especially Greek. I'd been here once, when I was eleven. My father had a meeting in Rome, and my mother and I toured. I enjoyed the place, but I knew Sydney would enjoy it even more.

I found her, starring up at the coliseum in awe. She'd never seen it in person before, I knew that, and even though this was technically a spirit dream, and therefore not real, I knew it felt real.

"Adrian," she finally spoke, still looking over the building. "This is amazing."

I smiled, looking over her. She had on a pair of jeans and a white blouse. Her hair was perfect, not a strand out of place. And her face was more beautiful every time I saw it. As if she could tell I was starring, she finally glanced at me.

"I thought you'd like this." I told her.

Her smile grew. "Like it? I love it, Adrian."

Like that, I couldn't stand not being beside her. I closed the distance, taking a couple of steps, and pulled her into a tight embrace. I kissed her hair, and looked down at her. "How was the meeting?"

"It was incredible! I met everyone, and they seemed nice enough. We did a ritual, and used the elements. Well, not spirit, but the others. And Adrian, it felt amazing. Like everything was clear, and just perfect. I never felt that way before. Oh, and I also got a cloak that they made for me. All of them sewed a piece of fabric on to it. They all had one. And I chose a witch name. Iolanthe."

"Iolanthe?" I questioned, eyebrows raised.

She smirked. "It's Greek actually, for violet flower. It made me think of how you mentioned the purple in my aura, and with the lily. It just felt right to me."

"On second thought, you're right. It suits you perfectly. My little Lanthe." I joked.

She didn't think it was that funny. "I really prefer Sage as a nickname."

"I don't know, Lanthe has a ring to it." I tapped her nose with my finger.

"Adrian." She gave me a stern look. "No."

I laughed. "Ms. Bossy pants."

She finally gave in a smiled. "That name is only to be used for witch business. Not my personal life."

I sighed. "Fine. I shall only call you that when you are using magic. Like around Hopper, for instance." Hopper, our lovely pet dragon. "How is he by the way?"

"Still in my purse, actually." She frowned. "I should have taken him out and fed him before I got back. With Zoe here it's hard to find the time."

"Just bring him over tomorrow, we can have some quality bonding time."

"Bonding time? Are you sure this involves Hopper?" She eyed me.

"Not if you don't want it to." I leaned in closer to her, my hand moving down her back, creeping lower and lower. "His mom and dad do need to make sure to spend time together too."

She shivered as my hand stopped just low enough. "Adrian." She whispered.

My lips found her cheek, and they slowly moved down to her neck. She smelt amazing. She felt amazing. Man, she did things to me.

"Adrian," She whispered out again. "We need to, um, stop."

"Stop?" I asked, my lips still brushing over her skin. They got to her shoulder, earning me a small moan. "I'm rather enjoying myself."

"Ugh." She sighed. "Me too. Trust me, I am, but you know how using too much spirit will harm you. We can do this in real life. Tomorrow."

"I honestly don't know if I can wait that long." I told her, sighing and, to my own disappointment, pulling away. "But you're right, as per usual."

She placed those soft lips of hers onto my cheek, pulling back and eyeing me. "Trust me, this will continue. Just not here. Not now. You need to stop using spirit so much. You've checked in on me, that's what this dream was for. Not-"

"-making out?" I finished for her. Earning myself one of her adorable grins.

"Exactly." She nodded. I saw her eyeing the coliseum once again.

"One day, I will take us there. I'll add it to my to do list."

She raised an eyebrow. "To do list?"

I smirked. "My little secret."

She shook her head. "So what is that? Escape plan number fifty seven, travel to Rome and live in the coliseum?"

I laughed. "Yes. And sneak through, making sure to never get caught. Living the dangerous life of a coliseum hobo. Sounds like a good plan."

She snorted. "You really need some sleep."

I winked. "Fine. I can't wait for tomorrow."

"Me either." Suddenly, she stopped smiling. "Wait, I forgot to tell you something."

"What happened?" I asked, becoming serious.

"My parents…they're getting a divorce."

I nodded. "I know." She looked confused so I told her about how Zoe told us back at Clarence's. "I'm sorry. Are you okay?"

She nodded. "I'm worried about Zoe though."

Of course she was, she wouldn't be my Sydney unless otherwise. This girl would put her friends and family above herself each time. I knew that. It also bothered me, she needed to look out for herself too.

She continued. "She's under eighteen, meaning the custody is still up for grabs. My dad wants her, and he will fight hard. He'll have the alchemists back up, as well as Zoe's, I hate to say. I don't want my dad to be in charge of her. My mom, she wants Zoe, and she wants to put her in a normal high school, away from the Alchemist life. I want that too. She's already too much like my dad, she worships him. And when this goes to court, because it will, she's going to choose him, I know it. I can't have that, I can't have him solely responsible for her. He'll turn her into a monster."

Seeing Sage like this, stressing over her family, made my heart ache. "What can I do?" I asked.

She looked up at me. "You can't do anything. This is my responsibility, I need to make Zoe realize that being with mom is better. I just need to do it in a way that will make her not hate me or report me to dad or the other Alchemists."

"You think she would do that to you?" I asked, suddenly more worried for her. "Your own sister?"

She slumped her shoulders. "I honestly hope she wouldn't, but deep down…I think she would. If she thought it was the Alchemist way." She bit her lip, a sign that I knew she was stressed out. "But I can't let _him_ win. If he gets full control over her…"

"Hey," I said, tilting her head so that she made eye contact with me. "That won't happen. If there is anything that I am certain of, it's you and your ability to go through anything and come back stronger. You can do this, and I am here for you. I'll be here for you, no matter what. And I assure you, nothing will happen to you. I'll protect you, I promise."

With that, she kissed me. I was caught off guard for a second, but it didn't take me long to recover. Her lips moved over mine in a way that made my heart flutter, and my body tingle. Only she had this effect on me, just by a kiss. When her mouth opened, and my tongue made contact with hers, I was lost. I was lost in her. Her ability to do this to me, made me sure that we were right for each other, that there was no one out there that was more right for me.

As the kiss grew, I knew I had to end it or else it would go way further. And there was no way that I would let this happen in a spirit dream. "Sage," I groaned, my voice sounding thicker than I ever imagined it could.

"Yes?" She asked no louder than a whisper.

"If we don't stop now, I'm not sure that we will be able to."

With that, she reluctantly pulled away, searching my eyes. "How do you have such control?"

I smirked. "Trust me, I wish I didn't sometimes."

She smiled. "Get to bed."

"I wish I could get to yours." I told her, which earned me a blush.

"Adrian." She warned.

I chuckled, pulling fully away. "Have sweet dreams, Sage. And my sweet dreams I mean dream of me."

"Aren't I technically dreaming of you already?" She asked.

"Smartass." I replied, winking and ending the dream.

I came back to the real world, opening my eyes to my yellow living room. The clock read two am. Wow, that was longer than I intended. But worth it, I decided. Getting up off the couch, I glanced at my empty canvases. Still not sure of how to paint a self-representation of me, I gave up thinking and turned off the record player, which was not just a bunch of static. Stretching, I walked to my room, collapsing on my bed. Sleep usually didn't come easy to me, and now that the drink I had earlier was out of my system, I laid in bed not being able to fall asleep.

After tossing and turning for over half an hour, I got up and went to the liquor cabinet. Opening it, I took hold of the bottle of tequila. My hand shook.

"No." I said aloud. I put the bottle back, and closed the cabinet. I started to walk back and forth from one side of my apartment to the other, and on about the eighteenth lap, I finally went back to my bedroom. Lying on my bed, I started to think about Sydney and how I first met her. Which got me thinking about Rose and therefore Lissa. Which in turn brought me back to my Aunt, the former Queen. Everyone seemed to hate her, except for me. Her death always sprung up on me almost every day, thinking of how she was murdered so cold bloodedly just got me angry.

No one understood me back when she was alive, she was the only one. She knew me, she believed in me. I saw her good side, and she saw mine. I missed her. I missed my mom. Every day, not talking to her aggravated me. My stupid father still wouldn't give me permission to see her. Family is what mattered. Sydney, the violet flower, I laughed out loud, was like my family. Her aura, the colors, it shone. Like the sun. She was the only sun that I could handle. Not the real one. That would hurt.

I snapped out of it. It being spirit. Sitting up, I took a deep breath. Ramblings, moving from one thought to another, this was what I dealt with. It felt like it was me, but wasn't. Like my mind wasn't my own. These thoughts and spirits controls were becoming more frequent for me. It was happening on a daily basis. I knew this, yet spirit was like an addiction. I couldn't just stop using it. It was a part of me, side effects included.

I laid back down. Closing my eyes, I pictured Sydney's face. Her eyes, that always looked so serious, so sure. Those lips, the ones that tasted like heaven. Her hair, that shined and lit up my world. Everything about her. And with that, I let go of my worries, my thoughts, and drifted off into a dreamless sleep.


	2. Stressed Out

**Thanks for the awesome reviews. Sorry that I didn't write anything sooner, but it's been a busy summer! Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys! **

Sydney's POV

I woke up hearing a scream. Jumping up, I sprang into action. A sound came from the bathroom, and I realized it was Zoe. I ran over, throwing the door open.

"Zoe! Are you okay?" I stopped short, looking at her. She was in a towel, obviously just out of the shower, and her face was staring at her reflection in the mirror. I took a second to readjust to her appearance. I still saw her as the little kid sister, the one that would follow me around, ask to play games with me, and basically be a kid. Now she, I hated to admit it, was grown up. He brown hair, same as the color of our fathers, was cut to just above her shoulders. Her eyes, browner than mine, had a maturity to them now that they didn't before I left home. She was a teenager. Fifteen, and I somehow missed the moment when she went from childhood, to now.

"I'm not okay!" She said sternly. "Look at my face."

I came over, and she turned towards me. "What? I don't see anything. Just a…oh. A pimple? That's why you were screaming?"

That obviously wasn't the answer she had hoped for from me. "Just a pimple? Just? Sydney, I have never in my life had a pimple. Ever."

Thinking about it, I don't think I had either. I had been lucky, and missed that specific side effect of growing up. Possibly because of my good eating and personal hygiene habits. But maybe it was just something as lucky as genetics. I don't think I ever asked mom about it though. Thinking of mom brought back what had happened last night. I gave an apologetic smile to my sister. "Use the makeup that we use to cover the lilies that will work." I assured her. "Zoe, dad called you yesterday, right?"

Her eyes grew sharper. "Yeah, he called you too?"

I shook my head, "Mom did. She told me about the divorce."

"Mom? I only heard from dad. They must have split up the phone call responsibility." Zoe said, opening the drawer that held out makeup. Our, being the operative word. My makeup, was now being shared. I didn't really mind, but I also didn't like the fact that my fifteen year old sister was wearing makeup of any sort now. She interrupted my thoughts, "I cannot believe they are divorcing. And now they all know our personal life. I was stupid, I shouldn't have said anything out loud. But I was just mad and upset, I mean really? They've been married for years. And now, when I finally am in the field, they spring this on me?"

I leaned back against the wall. I didn't play into the fact that she was talking about Adrian and them when she mentioned our personal life, but was she really making this about herself? Our parents were divorcing, didn't she think of how they were feeling? Putting that aside with a deep breath, I tried to stay focused. "Zoe, I doubt they just thought of it. I mean, you have to admit they weren't really getting along for years. They grew apart, became different people." I was mostly speaking about dad becoming something different, but I knew he was her favorite, so I wasn't going to upset her anymore by getting into specifics.

She finished applying the cover up and started brushing out her hair. "I know that. I wasn't blind. I mean, I was the only one home to witness all of their fighting."

"They fought lots?" I questioned.

"Like every second of every time they were together." She scoffed. "About you, Carly, me, Alchemists, and so on. And I was privy to it all."

I suddenly did feel sorry for her. If we were talking or I was home more, maybe I could have helped her out. I could have been a better big sister. "I'm sorry Zoe, I didn't realize how bad it was."

She turned to me. "You were doing this. Our job. So really, I shouldn't be mad." She took my hand in hers, squeezing. "I just wish we kept talking. I let my anger get the best of me. Through training with dad, I think I've learnt to overcome my emotions. I am sorry that I stopped talking to you." She let go of my hand. "Anyway, I need to get dressed and you need a shower. I mean it Sydney, you smell. What did Ms. Terwilliger want from you last night anyways? Do go bath in a swamp?"

I looked down at myself. The ceremony was outside, and there had been some magical elements cast on me that had a bit of an odor, to say the least. But I couldn't tell Zoe that. "I walked here after doing her research and went through some of the bushes. Short cut, you know?"

"What time did you get here last night? I went to sleep at like eleven. Isn't it illegal or something to have a teacher keep you so late?" She walked out of the bathroom, headed to our closet.

"I don't know. I should shower though." I said.

I went took closed the bathroom door. Turning on the water it ran warm, at best. Not hot, like I liked. I sighed, one thing about having a roommate was that they could really mess up your routine. I wanted a hot shower, not luke warm. But I would deal with it, it was worth having my sister back in my life. I knew that deep down her not talking to me left a whole in my heart, and having her back was slowing making my heart whole again.

I spent like four minutes in the shower, partially because the water was running colder and colder by the minute, and also because I knew I woke up late and had to get to breakfast to meet with my 'family'.

Wrapping my hair in a towel, I stepped out of the bathroom. Zoe was already dressed, and had put her hair up in a high pony tail.

"I'll be like 10 minutes," I told her. "If you want you can head on over to the cafeteria. I don't want you late because of me."

"I'd rather wait and be late, than spend more time with _them."_ She announced.

I went to the closet, rolling my eyes as my head was turned away from her. Zoe's feelings for the Dhampir's and Moroi weren't anything that she hid. Especially to me. Around them, her remarks and bashing was died down, due to her wanting to be professional and be the best Alchemist alive. But with me, she vented continuously. I usually didn't say much, always hoping she would just stop and leave it alone. But it was becoming harder and harder to actually leave it alone. I knew Alchemists felt that way, heck, even I was supposed to feel that way. But I had changed. The Alchemists were liars, and they would do anything to control myself and others like me. Little did they know, I was against them. I met Marcus Finch, an ex-Alchemist who showed me that they were liars and not to be trusted. He even tattooed me with special ink to make sure that the Alchemists could never control me again. Marcus wanted me to join him in a rebel group against the Alchemists, but I couldn't do that. I wanted to work from the inside. Plus, staying here with my friends and new boyfriend helped to persuade me.

Getting dressed, I quickly went to blow dry my hair, styling it straight and perfect. Almost, I really wanted to flat iron it, but I was running out of time. Adding my foundation and a bit of mascara, I was ready to go.

Zoe and I left our room. I felt my phone vibrate on the way out. Checking it, Eddie had texted me: **Where r u?**

I texted a quick response: **Sry, running late. Zoe and I will be there soon. **

Putting my phone away, I glanced at Zoe, noticing her eyeing me.

"What?" I asked.

"Isn't it weird that he's texting you?"

"No. It's part of the job." I explained.

"I know, but they just expect so much from us. Things like food, for example. Yesterday they just assumed I would take precautions and just order food for them. And when I didn't, they complained. I mean it's not part of the job. It's bad enough having to give them rides and be near them. You'd think they would understand that." Zoe rambled on. "I just always feel so on edge and stressed out. I honestly don't know how you handle it all. I completely understand why you wanted me here. Being alone with them could drive you insane."

I nodded along, pretending to be understanding of what she was feeling. But on the inside, I just wanted to cover my ears and stop her from talking. She never used to be like this. I honestly never heard her talk about Moroi and Dhampir's before, only Alchemist topics like fighting, knowledge, history, stuff like that. The odd time she would be curious about them, but she would never complain about them or act better than them. In my time away, she had changed. She'd become more like our father.

We got to the cafeteria, and I automatically spotted the others. We got to the table and Zoe automatically told me she would go get a couple of apples and muffins for us. I agreed, only because I wanted to talk to the group without her for a moment. As she left, I took a seat beside our newest arrival, aside from Zoe, Neil. He was assigned as Jill's guardian, along side Eddie. So far I personally liked him, though he was quiet. I also knew that Jill and Angeline thought he was hot. I wasn't sure if Eddie appreciated all the flirting and googly eyes the girls made at Neil, but I was pretty sure Angeline did it so she could get over Eddie, and Jill did it to make Eddie jealous. Though, neither of them told me otherwise.

"Hey guys," I said.

They all smiled over at me. "You being late is like astronomically impossible," Jill said.

I shrugged. "I went to bed late."

Jill nodded, understanding. The others, however, did not.

"Too much extra studying with Ms. Terwilliger?" Eddie asked me.

"Something like that," I told him. I glanced over at where my sister was, she was in line talking to a couple of girls from her classes. I turned back to the group. "Okay, so how did yesterday go?"

The table was silent for a complete second. Then it went chaotic.

I heard, "We really missed you!" "It was definitely not the same." "She didn't even order us food." "It was awkward." They all talked, except Neil. Which kind of made me like him more. I enjoyed the quiet that came along with him. That, and he also never asked me for anything. He thought his sole responsibility was to protect Jill, and any social or personal inquiries were not thought of.

Jill spoke over everyone, "We are just saying that you are like one hundred percent better. And we missed you. And don't leave us again."

The group nodded. I smiled. "Thanks but you have to accept that Zoe is going to be around and sometimes I can get held up. I mean, she isn't that bad…" As soon as I said it, I knew they disagreed. I could read it in their expressions. "Come on guys, give her a chance."

"We are. We just aren't…used to her." Eddie said helpfully.

"And it doesn't help that she like totally hates us and basically wishes we were dead." Angeline piped in.

"She does not want you guys dead. And she doesn't hate you." I told them, knowing it was a lie. "She's just been told not to like you. So she has it instilled in her head that you guys are the bad guys."

"You weren't that bad when you arrived." Jill mentioned.

"You also never saw me before that. I had time with Rose and Dimitri prior to all of this, you know. It helped me accept you. But before, I'm pretty sure I would have acted the same as Zoe." I thought for a second and added, "Well maybe a bit better. But not much."

With that, Zoe came back, taking the seat on the end of the table. She had to take a chair from another table, though there was already one located beside Jill. All in all, it was awkward for her to do that. It would have been easier to sit with Jill, but this wasn't anything unusual.

"Thanks," I told her as she handed me an apple and a blueberry muffin.

She nodded. Usually this was how things were when we were altogether. There was silence, as well as awkward conversation.

"Your hair looks nice in the pony tail, Zoe," Jill tried to make polite conversation.

Zoe smoothed her hair and then she jerked her hand to her neck. Her eyes opened wide. "You just like having a better view of my throat." She glared over at Jill, then went back to eating her muffin, body stiff as a board.

"I didn't mean…" Jill started, but stopped. This was how awkward the conversation usually was between Zoe and the others. She always made remarks about blood or killing whenever Jill spoke up. When it was Eddie or the others, Zoe just talked about being tainted by two kinds of species.

I sighed. "I think your hair does look nice up, Zoe. It frames your face. I think that was what Jill meant."

She glared over at me. "Whatever."

I glanced at Jill, and she looked pissed. I mouthed, sorry, but she just shrugged. None of them technically blamed me for my sister's cold remarks, but I always felt responsible. It panged me that she felt this was alright to do.

I checked the time. "We should head to class." We still had a couple of minutes, but I think everyone wanted to just get the heck away from the table so we all agreed. I took the apple with me, storing it in my backpack for later.

Angeline left quickly since she had to meet up early with her teacher to discuss one of her projects. Since the whole math episode, she had really been trying harder with her schooling. I was proud of her. Zoe and Jill had all the morning classes together, considering they were the same age, so they went off towards the same way. Though, they stayed on opposite sides of the pavement. Eddie and Neil watched after them, till Jill faded from sight.

"I'm really sorry about that guys," I told them, referring back to my sister. "I promise, I'll talk to her."

"I don't think that you can say anything more that can make a difference, Sydney." Eddie said. "And it's not your responsibility. Zoe's old enough to make her own decisions about how she acts."

"I'm her sister, I at least have to try." I told him, sighing.

His hand went to my shoulder. "Stop stressing out. We don't blame you. Plus," he added. "You kind of have a lot on your plate now. You know about your parents' right? Zoe told us yesterday."

I nodded. "I honestly can't say I didn't see something like this coming. My parents haven't gotten along for a while now. But with Zoe being under eighteen, there's the whole custody thing. I just don't want her with my dad. I have to figure out how to convince her."

Eddie vaguely knew about my father and what he was like. "Don't stress about Zoe's attitude on top of all that. Please?"

Even though it was a lie, I nodded.

"We should get to class now," Neil said. I honestly had forgotten he was there.

And with that, we headed off our separate ways. This whole divorce and custody battle were going to drive me insane, not to mention me lying to everyone about Adrian, and the fact that I was basically working undercover as an Alchemist to spy them. Oh, and I was a witch in training. I passed one of the coffee huts, and glanced over at it, debating whether I wanted my one cup of coffee now or later. With all the thoughts roaming through my mind, I decided now was better than later. I needed the caffeine to get through the next couple of hours. Adrian was the only thing I was looking forward to today, but that was several hours away.

Ordering an extra-large (we never discussed size), I headed to my first class.


	3. Portait

**Hello guys! Sorry for the late post, but it's been a bit of a busy week. Hope you like the chapter! Also, remember that the Fiery Heart promotion videos will be coming soon, so keep an eye out for them! **

Adrian's POV

Waking up early was not something I enjoyed doing, to say the least, but I had class today. My class at the university was something I actually looked forward to. Usually.

Today, I knew that my self-portrait was not yet completed or ever close to being completed, as I had not started on it. My professor would be very…displeased with me. He always mentioned I had a talent for art, and he believed in me. So explaining the whole portrait business to him would be a not-so-good experience. But what choice did I have really.

Currently, on the bus, I at least had some time to go over more ideas on the portrait. Though, my thoughts didn't manage to get too far when I spotted a woman getting on the bus. She was attractive. Very attractive. She had long brown hair, and some ocean blue eyes that proved to be a nice contrast with the hair. Not to mention, her body had curves in all the right places. And, naturally, she sat right across from my seat.

She smiled at me, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Hey," she greeted me.

Now I knew that I had Sage. I mean, she was my true match, someone that I trusted completely. Not to mention, she herself was good looking. But when I get attention from any beautiful girl, and I get the added bonus of wanting to be distracted by school work, I mean, what's a guy to do?

So I nodded back, "Hey."

"Do you take this bus often?" She asked me.

"Yeah, I go to the university." I only had one class, one in which I would probably fail if I didn't complete the next assignment, but she didn't need to know that.

"Really? Smart and cute. Good combination." She smiled wider. "What are you taking?"

"Art," I replied honestly. This girl was coming onto me, and although I didn't mind the attention, I knew that Sydney would. Also, if Jill saw, she would be complaining to me about cheating on Sage, which would probably turn into an argument, leaving me with a headache and a couple of angry girls. So I actually attempted to not flirt. Yes, me Adrian Ivashkov, not flirting.

"Art? So you're an artist? Need a muse?" She flirted.

Again, thinking of Sage, I didn't let on. "I have one already. My girlfriend."

That put a damper on the situation. "Girlfriend?"

I nodded. "Yep."

She slowly stood up, and bent down to meet me at eye level. This gave me a good shot of her cleavage, but I didn't look. For long. "Well, if you ever decide to break things off with her, my name is Heather. And here's my number." She got a pen out and took my hand, writing her digits on my wrist. She then stood up, turned around slowly, giving me a nice view. And she rang the bell, signaling for the next stop. The bus pulled over, and she took another glance at me, winked, and proceeded in walking off the bus.

I glanced at my wrist, and smirked. Really, this was natural behavior for girls when they were around me. I just had that charm I guess.

The stop for the university approached and I got off the bus, heading for class. I got there with about five minutes to spare. Glancing around the room I saw one of my friends that I made and sat next to him.

"Hey Ian," I said, taking a seat. "How's it going?"

"Horrible. That stupid portrait is killing me," Ian told me, which was a relief that I wasn't the only one having trouble.

"I know. I honestly haven't been able to put anything on the canvas."

"Really? My whole problem is choosing which portrait to use. I've done three so far. One just regular me. The other two are abstract. One is me, but it's more like Picasso style. The other is a tiger. Because I have red hair." He was a ginger.

"And you are ferocious?" I questioned with a smile.

He laughed. "Obviously."

Ian was kind of a nerd. At least when it came to school and assignments. The guy was smart. But in real life, he lived on campus and was laid back and relaxed. He also threw some killer parties in the dorm. He had short, spiked red hair, and always had a witty shirt on. Today it read, "I'd Hit That" and had a picture of a piñata on it. Not my style, but hey, it worked on him.

"But you haven't even started?" He asked.

"Nope. My mind is blank. I'm literally screwed."

"Well I have something that will lighten your spirits, my friend." He bent over to dig through his backpack. After a couple of seconds, he pulled out an envelope. "I have got tickets for the premiere of Car Lot."

I raised an eyebrow, eyeing the tickets in his hand. "Car Lot? What is that?"

"I movie," He explained.

"I've never heard of it."

He handed me two. "That is because it is made from University people, and shown in the campus theatre. My friend is like the costume designer for it. She gave me some tickets to hand out. So take that girlfriend you keep talking about and come tonight. It starts at 8, but come by 7:30 to get a decent seat. There's popcorn, drinks, and all that fun stuff too."

"Sounds amazing." I said sarcastically. "The title alone speaks wonders."

"Hey, it's free," he shrugged.

Before I could reply, the professor walked in and everyone became silent. All he did was put a bowl of fruit on the table and sat down. We all knew what to do by now, and this meant that we needed to sketch it out. I hated sketching. I liked painting better. But the course was about all kinds of techniques, so I had no choice but to join the class and start.

The shapes weren't too tricky, but the shadowing and capturing the light was. Although I didn't like sketching, I got into the art, becoming absorbed in the moment of it. Halfway through class, Professor Henderson walked around the class asking about the portrait assignment. Now this distracted me. I was not looking forward to talking with him.

He got to Ian and I overheard some pointers and a couple of ideas on how to choose the right piece. Then his shadow came over me.

I looked up. "Hello professor. Looking good today. Is that a new hair cut?"

He smiled. "No, and I know when you are trying to suck up. How is the assignment?"

"Cutting right to the point, I see. My assignment is going alright. Just coming up with the ideas and trying to work it out in my mind on what it would look like on a canvas. You know, just making sure the color choice would work and the shading." I rambled on.

"So you have nothing?" He questioned.

I nodded. "I'm just stuck. I have been working at it, I swear."

"Lacking inspiration?"

"Something like that." I responded.

He pulled up a chair from another table, taking a seat. "Adrian, I know you are a good artist, possibly a great one. Just don't let this one assignment stress you out. It's a portrait, I've seen you do plenty of other peoples portraits, and they turned out great. What's holding you back on yours?"

He didn't let me answer, he just gave me a meaningful look and moved on to the other person beside me. Was something holding me back? If so, how would I figure out how to move on from it? Instead of thinking it over, and moving into thoughts that I wasn't so sure I wanted to move into yet, I continued the fruit sketching for the remainder of class.

In the hallway, Ian said goodbye, re-mentioning the movie and something about how I'd better go or else he would throw red paint all over my finished pieces. He was a good friend that was for sure.

Checking the time, I figured it was about lunch time over at Amberwood. I called Jill. And she picked up after two rings.

"Adrian," I could practically hear the smile in her voice.

"Hey Jailbait," I responded happily. Hearing her voice and knowing she was okay always made me happy. She was like a sister to me, we had a bond that brought us close together. "How's school?"

"Umm, fine." Usually when she responded with the word fine, it meant that her morning with Zoe was not so great. Since they were both the same age, they were in the same grade. Their morning classes matched perfectly, meaning Jill always had to deal with having glares and rude comments thrown her way.

"Well, I was actually wondering if you could do me a favor. It's going to involve you and the hole Scooby gang to keep Zoe preoccupied tonight, so that I can take Sydney out to a movie. Now, be honest, is this possible?" I asked her, acting like 007. It was something that I occasionally asked of Jill, to allow Sage and I some free time to be together. She was the only one that knew about our relationship, since the whole bond thing brought her into my head, so she was the only one I could ask in a situation like this.

"Just a second," She said. I heard her footsteps walking away, and in a couple of seconds she spoke up again. "Sorry, but Zoe was sitting with us."

"And Sydney?" I asked, wanting to know what she was up to.

Jill responded, "No, she's eating with Trey. He pulled her aside earlier."

"Trey? The ex-warrior guy?" I asked. "Why is she with him?"

"Is that jealousy I hear, Adrian?" Jill questioned.

"Just answer, Jailbait."

I heard her giggle. "All I know is that he came over and asked her to sit with him for lunch. He had a look on his face that he wanted to talk about something more, but he never said anything to us."

"I'll have to talk to Sydney about it later. Speaking of later," I remembered. "Please, can I count on you?"

I heard her moan. "Adrian, this would mean spending two nights in a row with her. You do not understand how much of a pain Zoe can be. I don't even know where to begin."

"Trust me, I would owe you big. Just spend time with her. Make something up about needing to go out to get more clothes for the winter or something. I mean, it's her Alchemist role to make sure nothing happens to you."

"And why wouldn't Sydney come along then? How would she get out of that?" Jill asked.

"Say Ms. Terwilliger is taking her someplace for the class. There has to be a history museum someplace around here, Sydney can lie."

I waited for Jill to respond. Finally, she did. "Alright, I'll see what I can do. I'll talk to Sydney first, and see if she can make the plan better."

"Thanks, Jill. Again, I owe you." I really liked the kid.

"Yep, you do. After everything is planned out, I'll tell Sydney to go to your place and meet you for the movie. That movie sounded boring by the way. You should take her to like a Cineplex or something."

"But it has the word _car_ in it. So she should enjoy it." I added.

Jill snorted. "If you say so. I myself, will definitely try to not listen in. You'll have the night to yourselves."

"Perfect," I said goodbye and hung up.

It was rare that Sage and I had actual dates. We usually hung at my place for an hour, and made out a bit. Or talked. And that was the extent of our relationship. Oh, and we would be able to meet at Clarence's twice a week for blood feedings, but that also included Zoe and the others. So not very romantic. Tonight, however, we would see a movie. Maybe not the best romantic date, but at least it would get us out. Not to mention, at university, I could actually introduce her as my girlfriend. There would be no sneaking or pretending to be siblings, we would actually be out in public as a couple. This was going to be a night to remember.


	4. The Date

Sydney's POV

After hearing out Jill's story, or Adrian's, I guess, I knew the plan wouldn't be that easy. I desperately wanted to go with Adrian, but Zoe was going to be hard to convince. After classes ended, I still had my free study break to come up with a better plan.

Thinking it through, I managed to pull something together.

I caught up with Zoe, right outside her classroom door. She was talking to some girl from her class, and when she saw me, she said her goodbyes and came over.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" She asked.

"I have some news," I started. "The Alchemist's believe that you aren't getting the full experience here. They called me to explain that you needed more time without me there interfering. They want to see if you can actually be in the field without support."

She looked worried. Of course, this was a complete lie. Mostly. I did contact the Alchemist's and told them the idea that Zoe should get some alone time with the Moroi and Dhampir's so that she could really truly experience the life of an Alchemist in the field. They agreed, eventually, and I just had do convince Zoe.

"So what I am saying is that tonight, you are going to go out with them. They all need some winter attire," I continued. Winter attire would be pretty much the same as all the other seasons, since Palm Springs was hot all year round, but jeans or pants would become an option since it wasn't as blistering hot as it was in the summer. "Also, with Christmas coming up they all want to buy each other gifts. So you are going to go to the mall with everyone."

"Alone?" She asked, looking frightened. "Come on Sydney, didn't you mention to the Alchemists about yesterday and how I was alone with them?"

Darn it. I was hoping she wouldn't bring it up. "I did, but they wanted you to also get experience doing something not so routine. I mean, you've tagged along with the blood feedings before, and they want to have you experience something new. Shopping, with them, is going to be that new experience. Then, afterwards, I will report back based on the experience of everyone. Trust me Zoe, they do this all the time to Alchemist's in training."

"Shopping? They make them go shopping?" She frowned.

"Well, shopping or something else. Just spend a few hours with them, have some supper, and come back. I'll also be interviewing everyone to see how the experience was, so remember to act professional." I added that part in so that she would be nicer. Hopefully, it would work.

She took a deep breath. "Alright, and what will you be doing exactly?"

"I have to go to the Palm Springs Historical Society, for Ms. Terwilliger. Some project she is working on requires information from there," I told her.

"She sure requires a lot from you." Zoe muttered. "I don't get it, why would you do all that. You're just supposed to be like passing, not actually being the best student on campus."

"I don't mind it, I actually liked school when I was in it," I replied. "You know that."

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I remember. I also remember dad getting mad when I didn't get as high of grades as you. That was fun." She added sarcastically.

I smiled. "Sorry, I know it was hard on you to have such an intelligent sister."

She laughed, a sound that I rarely heard from her anymore. "Whatever. You got the smarts, and I got the looks."

"I think we both got the looks," I frowned.

She didn't say anything, she just shrugged. We got back to the dorm, and I texted Eddie explaining what was happening tonight. I only mentioned the shopping part, and not what I was doing with Adrian. He didn't know about our relationship, no one did expect Jill, and it would stay that way. Moroi and humans, let alone Alchemist's, weren't supposed to be together romantically. It would be frowned upon by both our sides. So the less people that found out, the better.

Around five, Zoe went to meet the others in the front. I gave my keys to Zoe, telling her to pass them along to Eddie. I didn't want to give up my vehicle, but no one else had a car. Zoe didn't look happy when she left, but at least she agreed to go. And with her gone, I got ready for my date with Adrian. He would pick me up here around six, and we would grab a bite to eat before going to his campus for a movie. All that Jill mentioned was it was about cars.

I opened up my closet and view the clothing that hung inside. I was stuck on what to wear. I mean, it was a date. An actual date, where Adrian and I would be going out in public. I couldn't just wear my regular clothes, I needed to dress it up a little. But after searching through the closet for ten minutes, all I decided on was a pair of skinny jeans that I managed to buy a couple of weeks ago when I went lingerie shopping. Adrian appreciated the bras, but that was all he had seen. We were moving slow, and I really didn't mind. The skills that Adrian had with only kissing and making out, drove me insane. And I think the whole mystery of my body made Adrian go crazy too. It was a perfect match, though I knew eventually we would go further, past anywhere that I'd gone before. It was exciting, and nerve racking. Adrian had all the experience, whereas I had none. I knew that it didn't bother him, but it kind of bothered me. I was used to knowing everything and always being the smartest one in the room. On this particular subject, however, I was possibly the dumbest one.

I put those thoughts aside, though, as I pulled the skinny jeans on. They were darker jeans, which hugged my legs in all the right places. I had gained about five pounds, so I actually had a bit more curves now. After Adrian gave me the weight gaining advice, I hated him for it. But I realized he was actually right, especially after trying on a couple of bras in a size up. Of course, five pounds was good enough for me, I didn't want to gain anymore.

Still looking through the tops, I searched Zoe's side, growing desperate. Her style was more colorful than mine, but still modest. Our father's influence, I was sure. She had two red tops, and I immediately decided to wear one of them. Adrian liked me in red.

The one top was a t-shirt style with ruffles going down the front. The other top was long sleeved, but it had a bigger dip in the chest region. I tried on both, and decided to go with the second one. I, of course, put on a tang top with black lace underneath, but it was a top that showed the figure a bit more. So I decided to go wild tonight.

After the outfit choice, I looked at my hair, and knew it was already styled perfectly straight. I didn't worry about changing it. For makeup, I added a thicker eye liner line, and some darker eye shadow to give a bit of a smoky eye effect, but nothing too drastic. Then I put on a layer of lip gloss, and I was ready. Checking the time, I knew I had to get going.

I made my way downstairs and outside in a matter of minutes. I was early, and I didn't see Adrian's car yet, so I took a seat on one of the benches. My phone rang, and I looked at the number.

"Hello?" I answered wearily.

"Sydney, good. I was wondering if you could do me a favor tomorrow." Ms. Terwilliger's voice came through.

"What is it?" I sighed. At least it wasn't for tonight.

"I have an order of books coming into a special bookstore downtown, and I won't be able to make it there to pick it up. They are important books, and I can't let them sit in the store."

"What kind of important books?" I asked.

"Magic ones, of course. But they are rare, and in the wrong hands, it would be disastrous. Can you pick them up? They usually arrive around noon, but go earlier and wait for the truck to come."

"Alright," I agreed. "Just give me the address." She did, and after writing it down, I hung up. Tomorrow was Saturday, so there wasn't school going on, but being away from Zoe yet again wouldn't be good. She wouldn't be happy about me leaving her again, but at least this time, my excuse with Ms. Terwilliger would be honest and not made up.

I heard a car honk, and jumped. Looking over I saw Adrian's beautiful yellow car parked by the curb. The car's name was the Ivashkonator. Though the car looked impressive, my eyes instantly went to the tall, hot guy getting out of the driver's seat. He walked over, and opened the passenger door.

Getting up of the bench, I made my way over. I took in the dark jeans he wore, that looked like they cost a fortune, which they probably did. But they just looked so good in all the right places on Adrian. He was also wearing a grey cardigan type sweater with a green shirt underneath. I swear, every waking minute of his life he looked like a male model.

"Hey, you look nice." I told him as I arrived. "Really nice."

He eyed me up and down. "Nice is not a word I would use to describe you. I would use a word much more-"

"Hey, we are still on campus." I said, stopping whatever dirty language was about to come out of his mouth. "People think we are related here."

He glanced around. "No one is here. Or watching."

I too peered around, and he was right. The campus was empty. Everyone must have plans for Friday, I supposed. "Oh."

I looked back up at him, and that is when his lips met mine. It was brief, but it did leave me breathless in the end. Adrian had that effect on me. I smiled, and got in the car. He came in on the other side after closing my door. We drove off.

"So where are we going for dinner?" I asked, curious.

"It's a surprise," he responded.

I rolled my eyes. "It's dinner, Adrian. How much of a surprise can it be exactly?"

"When Adrian Ivashkov is around, the surprises and mystery is endless, Sage."

"Did you seriously just refer to yourself in third person?" I questioned, smiling.

He never responded. Instead he turned up the radio, and continued to drive for about five minutes longer. I actually was surprised when we got to a convenient store. All I did was look at him.

He finally gave in and talked first. "Just trust me."

With that he got out, and went inside. I assumed I was supposed to wait in the car. I eyed the time, and then I glanced up at the store. Was he really getting dinner at a convenient store? I prayed this was a practical joke and he would come out saying he got me, and we would drive to a nice restaurant that had actual seats. Was that too much to ask for?

I got my hopes up when he came out of the store. But those hopes were shot down when I saw the bags in his hands. Not to mention, the slushes.

He got in and smiled.

"What did you get?" I asked tentatively.

"Something, I am sure you have never tried before," he responded. He proceeded to pull out two slushes, one that looked orange and red. The other was brown. Then he got out two hotdogs, a container of nachos with more cheese in it than actual nachos, and two bags of chips.

"Seriously, Adrian? There must be a weeks' worth of calories in this."

He smirked. "Just pretend calories don't exist, Sage. Just enjoy, and don't think about how unhealthy this must be. Just taste and eat. And thank me, of course."

He took a big bite of one of the hotdogs and sighed. "So good." He proceeded to eat, and comment on everything. I finally took one of the nachos, though it could have been pure cheese for all I knew, and stuffed it in my mouth. I swallowed, and Adrian stared at me, waiting for a response.

"It's…good. Really good. But really bad for you. So bad." I told him, really liking the food.

He laughed. "Kind of like me huh?"

I choked a bit on the food. And had to cough and take a sip of the brown slush to get the food down my throat. I looked over at him, and he had an amused look on his face. "Let's just eat and see that movie." I said, taking a bite of the hotdog.

He laughed harder. "You're so adorable when you blush."

"I think you mean, I am so adorable when I choke and almost die." I retorted.

Shaking his head, he continued to devour the food and slush. I managed to eat my hotdog, and like two more nachos. My slush was half full still when I threw it away. Adrian and I decided to save the chips for the movie. Although he mentioned something about popcorn and soda, I just ignored it and decided that I would not eat anymore tonight. Although I wasn't as hard-core healthy as I was a few weeks ago, I still had my limits. And this night was turning out to be unhealthy overload.

We made it to the school with a good twenty minutes to spare before the show started. I hadn't actually been the college before, and I suddenly wondered why. I mean, it was amazing. The buildings were vast and beautifully crafted. The architecture was one thing, but the literature and knowledge that these buildings held were a complete amazement. I wish I could have been assigned as a college student, rather than high school. But I knew that I had to be close to Jill. I wondered what they would do if this protection of Jill still continued into next year. I mean, Eddie and I would graduate (again). So wouldn't we be assigned to some sort of post-secondary? Of course, next year was a long ways off. It was only December. By the time June came along, we could all be in separate places. Queen Vasalissa could have made changes and Jill could be safe once again. Then what would happen to me? A rebel Alchemist who just happens to be in a relationship with a Moroi.

I looked up at that Moroi, and noticed him looking down at me. "What?" I asked.

He put his arms around my waist, touching my lower back. I wrapped mine around his shoulders. We were in an embrace, and we didn't have to worry about anyone caring or wondering why a brother and sister would do something like this. We also didn't have to worry about Alchemists coming in and finding us, no one knew we were here. It was…fantastic.

He smiled. "I'm just glad you could get away for this. The movie is probably going to be the worst thing ever made, so I do apologize in advance, but I am glad that you are here. With me."

I tiptoed up and met his lips with my own. I started out slow, moving my lips over every part of his, memorizing each portion. Then things heated up when he added his massive kissing skills, and I had to force myself to pull away, or else I was sure we were going to miss the movie.

I searched his eyes. "Well the good thing is, if the movie is a total bust, at least we will be together." I moved my hands into his hair, playing with a couple of strands. I continued, "We'll be sitting beside each other. Really close." I moved my body right up against his, separating any space between us. I thought I heard him make a moan. "Also, theaters are dark right? Meaning no one could really see us. It would be like we are sort of alone." I moved my hand to his cheek, and used my fingers to trace his lips. "Of course, I may actually like the movie, since it relates to cars in a way."

He interrupted. "Nope. You will hate the movie. You'll be so bored by it that we will definitely have to do something else to preoccupy that hour and a half."

I smiled, and stepped back. "Yeah, maybe just eat a bunch of popcorn or something."

He stepped forward, making us embrace once again. "Screw the popcorn." He leaned in and just started kissing me when a voice called out his name.

We both jumped and pulled a part. I think it was instinct or something. Getting caught was a constant thought on both of our minds. We had to get used to the idea that tonight, no one would care about seeing us together. I think Adrian had the same idea, since his hand grabbed ahold of mine, and he entwined his fingers through my own.

"Hey, Adrian! You made it!" A guy with super spikey red hair and a neon green shirt that said _Want to see if I glow in the dark?_ approached us. "And you must be the girlfriend." He smiled at me.

Adrian cut in. "Yep, Ian this is Sydney. And Sydney, this is Ian. He's in my art class. He is also the guy that scored us the movie tickets."

"Car Lot," Ian said. "Best movie ever."

I smiled. "Yeah, sounds great. Adrian and I were, um, just discussing it."

I heard Adrian laugh, but it was Ian who talked first. "I do apologize for forcing you guys into it, but at least I gave you something to do on a Friday night."

"I can think of a thousand other things to do on a Friday night," Adrian responded jokingly.

I nudged him and turned to Ian. "Thank you for the tickets, I'm sure the movie will be great."

"Thanks for the support. I doubt it, but thank you Sydney. Might I add, Adrian chose a good one," Ian winked at me and patted Adrian's shoulder. "She's hot, smart, from what you told me, and nice. Definitely a keeper, Adrian."

Adrian squeezed my hand. "I just hope she does housework and makes a decent sandwich. I mean, I have yet to see the woman cook."

I took my hand out of Adrian's hand and slapped his arm. "If you keep talking like that, I won't be a keeper."

Ian laughed. "If you break up, I am single. Just you know, FYI."

Adrian put an arm around me, bringing me into him. "No way man, she's mine. Even if she doesn't cook. I mean, my arm hurt's, at least I'll know that if a mugger ever comes, she can protect me."

I rolled my eyes. "Isn't that movie starting?"

Ian checked the time on his phone. "In like five more minutes. Guess it's time to get a seat. Some friends and I have a section saved if you want to join."

Adrian looked at me and replied, "No, I think we wanted something less crowded. Sydney here doesn't like a big crowd."

Ian smirked. "I'm sure that's that reason." And with that, we entered the building. I went to find a seat, while Adrian headed to the concession stand to buy some drinks and popcorn.


	5. Five Stars

**I know I haven't updated in a while, but life has been super busy lately. Sorry :( . Though this chapter may be shorter, I think that everyone will agree it's worth it. Hopefully.. And thanks for all the good feedback! I will try to update sooner next time! -J**

Adrian's POV

The concession stand offered popcorn, chocolate, candy, and pop. So naturally I got one of everything, placing it all in a box that they gave me. Heading into the theater, I searched for Sydney. It was already dark in the theater, and the opening commercials were playing already. I spotted her on the other side from where I stood. She was sitting in a corner location, in the very back. The closest person was about four rows ahead of us. Perfect.

I went through one of the aisles, avoiding feet from those sitting already. I heard a few grunts and sighs, but I made it.

Sydney's eyes went straight to the box of food. "What exactly did you get?" She whispered, as I sat down beside her.

I placed the drink in the cup holder between us, "Just some snacks. That's what movies are all about right? The popcorn, the candy, and the soda?"

She frowned. "I'm pretty sure people don't usually buy out the whole concession stand though. It's a little much, don't you think?"

I smiled. "How often do we go to movies? We have to make the most of it."

She shook her head, and took a sip of the drink. I got us a diet coke, and I hoped it would make her feel a bit healthier. From the upturn of the corner of her mouth, I knew it worked.

On the screen, there were some previews for other student made films, none of which looked the least bit interesting. If the previews looked this bad, I was sure that the actual movie would be about the same on the interest scale.

I saw a light from the corner of my eye, and noticed Sage was on her cellphone. "You know, when it comes to movie theaters, I believe that most people frown on the ideas of cellphone use."

She glanced at me, before going back to her phone. "I know that, but it's Zoe. She's texting me about the shopping trip, and she doesn't seem too happy. Apparently dinner in a crowded food court had her feeling the need to speak up about not biting people." Her phone buzzed. "And…now Eddie is texting me about speaking to Zoe regarding her manners and how they don't just go around biting people." She sighed, and typed something up real quickly.

"I know a solution for this problem," I told her.

She smiled. "And that would be?"

I took her phone from her, wasting no time, and turned it off, placing it in my pocket. "Problem solved." I patted down the spot where her phone laid.

"Adrian, I need the phone. What if someone like the Alchemists called me?" She whispered, seeming a tad bit upset.

I took her hand in mine, and kissed it softly. "For one night, just pretend that it's just you and me. And this awesome movie. That's all I ask for. Save the worry for tomorrow. I am pretty sure everyone can handle themselves without you for one night."

Her eyes searched mine, and finally I saw her relax. A little.

I had to work some Adrian magic here. So I stifled a yawn, and exaggerated my arms up above me. I placed one arm on the arm rest beside me, and the other around Sage's shoulders.

She laughed. "I didn't think people actually did that."

I loved the sound of her laugh. The soft musical pitch it held, and the way that everything around me suddenly turned hazy. It was her. Only her that I saw. She was the light to my darkness. My witch that would spellbound me to her and only her. A goddess. Sunlight. With purple sparks of flame.

"The sparks just grow, the clarity of you Sage. My Sage. Bring music to my ears, and I shall follow you. From darkness, the light grows and blinds me. Your clear, but the world around you is dark and blurry. I'll always find you. My light. My purple flame."

"Adrian?" I heard a voice off in the distance somewhere.

I knew I wasn't thinking straight. I couldn't control what was happening though. It was like my body and my mind were drifting away from me, and I had no control. But that voice, the angel was calling for me. The angel with the soft laugh.

"Adrian, come back to me. I know you're in there."

I heard her again. It was growing clearer. First her eyes. Those precious diamonds were wide and looked off. Worried. But they weren't as bright as I was used to. Something dark was there. A shadow. I suddenly felt something on my face. My cheeks. Hands. Running in circles on the surface of my skin. Warmth.

"Adrian?" Her voice came again, sharper. Realer.

"Hmm?" I mumbled off in the distance.

Hands were playing with my hair, running along the scalp. Massaging my neck. I leaned into them. "That feels nice."

"Adrian?" Sage whispered. "Are you alright?"

I looked at her. Her face was filled with worry. So I tried to make it go away by placing a kiss on the crinkled forehead. I pulled her into me, cuddling her into my side. The arm rest dug into my torso, but I didn't care at that moment.

"I'm good. Me again." I reassured her. "I'm sorry. I hate when you see that."

Her face turned up to look at me. "How often has this been happening?"

I shrugged, smoothing her hair. "Don't worry about it. It's a night of no worries, remember?"

"Adrian, this is serious. More serious than some food court drama. This is you and your life. You're using too much spirit. You need to cut down. I'm worried about you."

"Don't be. Really, Sage. I'll be fine. I always come back from it." I left out the concerning detail that it was becoming harder and harder to come out of my spirit dazes lately, but I didn't need to stress her out even more than usual.

"I know you're not telling me something. Adrian, you need to quit using it. I mean it." Her voice was stern and serious.

I kissed the top of her head. "I can't do that. I need it. I also need to see you every night, and seeing you is worth any of spirits side effects."

Before she could respond, the movie started, and our eyes were drawn to the screen. At least, they were for about a whole sixty seconds. The movie started out with potential. Displaying some names, credits to the cast and all that jazz. And in the background there was a nice little car lot, with some junky looking cars. The salesman was walking in the office, then he sat down to do paperwork. And then my eyes left the screen.

"How many stars so far?" I asked Sage.

She smirked. "Maybe a half a star."

"Ouch," I responded. "I'd give it at least one. You know, A for effort. But, I can think of a couple of things that would equal more than one star. I think I could even get a five star rating from you."

"Adrian…" She sighed.

I ran my hands from her shoulders, slowly down her back, reaching the bottom of her shirt and slightly touching the small amount of skin that was showing. My fingers stayed there, massaging slightly. I heard her sigh.

"Two stars," I whispered into her ear.

My mouth now went to her lovely neck. I moved them around softly at first, then spending large amounts of time on certain spots. Spots that made her shiver. Simultaneously, my hands started moving up her back, but under her shirt. The bare skin felt warm to the touch, and it made even me feel a little breathless.

"Three stars." I mumbled into her neck.

Those hands masterly moved to the bra region, touching the straps and the hook in the back. Teasing, but not undoing. I didn't want to push her too far. Especially in the movie theater. But that didn't mean I'd be a perfect gentleman. So those fingers roamed around the wire, tracing the bottom sides of the bra. I could feel Sage's heart beat from kissing her throat. It grew the closer I got to the front of her. Her skin also became warmer.

My hands stayed at the sides, the thumbs almost crossing the boundary. My lips moved on from the neck, lower. Now her breathing was becoming heavier. I think I heard her whisper/mumble my name. This just made me want to do more.

"Four stars." I mumbled into her. That shirt was sure getting in the way.

Instead of moving lower, I moved higher. Finally meeting her soft, waiting lips. My hands roamed under her shirt, avoiding one area, but deeply exploring all others. Our kiss deepened, and became wilder. Her arms were around me, pulling me closer and closer until there was no distance separating us. My mouth had a mind of its own, and went from her lips, to her neck, and all the areas between and around. I explored her, and tasted each spot. Making sure to memorize the ones that made her whimper. The ones that made her breath catch. The ones that made her whisper my name.

I pulled back slightly, looking down into her eyes. "You're amazing."

"Is this five stars then?" She asked, her voice shaking.

"More like four and a half." I replied, my hands pulling down her shirt. It must have bundled upwards while we were…getting to know each other.

She bit her lip. "And why didn't I get a full five?"

"Aren't you demanding?" I pinched her nose. "So needy."

She smiled, shaking her head. "I can't believe we just did that in a theater. I hope no one saw."

I glanced around. If someone saw then they would have had to turn around and be able to see pretty well in the dark. "I think we're safe." I told her.

I glanced to the screen. "I'm pretty sure we missed a lot of the movie."

"I'm pretty sure I don't care right now." She responded, her voice deeper.

I raised an eyebrow. "I like this side of you. You're a bit of rebel now, aren't you?"

"You still didn't answer my question." She changed the subject.

"Question?" I asked.

She sighed. "What exactly would five stars get me?"

I pulled her into me more, separating all space between us. Looking deep into her eyes, and holding her body against mine, I bent my head, getting even closer. I whispered, "Sage, a movie theater is no place for five stars. Five stars would involve three things. Privacy. A bed. And us."

I heard her make a low gasp.

"But, before we get there, we still need to get past four and a half. There's four point six, point seven, eight, nine…"


	6. Right on Target

Sydney's POV

After the movie ended, there was a get together at the campus bar. I still had some time that I could spare, so I agreed to go, much to Adrian's delight…and my own.

Walking there, he took hold of my hand, rubbing tiny circles to massage it. It felt like heaven.

"So does the place let in minors? Because that would be a bit of an issue for me." I told Adrian as we turned a corner.

"You don't have a fake ID?" He asked, sounding shocked.

"No, I would never use it. Do I really need an ID?"

He chuckled. "No, you don't. That place doesn't make it a habit to actually check IDs. They like the business that they get from the students on campus too much to kick anyone out."

"Isn't that a bit…"

"Don't even start," Adrian stopped me, putting up his finger and placing it on my lips. "It'll be fine. This is our date night, and nothing bad can happen."

I started to smile, but when I looked down at his hand and noticed some numbers written on it, my smile became a frown. "What's on your hand? Because it looks like a phone number."

Adrian looked down at his hand, then back up at me. "I can explain."

I stopped, making some people that were walking behind us side step and glare a bit. I didn't care though. "Explain it then. Because I highly doubt that phone number belongs to a man."

"You don't think I could get a man?"

"Adrian." I said his name in my most serious voice.

He sighed. "Some girl on the bus this morning came up to me, grabbed my hand and wrote it down. That's it. I was going to wash it off, but I must have forgotten. And there is no way in hell that I would call her or any other girl when I have you right in front of me. I wouldn't trade you for anything or anyone on the planet. Okay?"

I could feel the pit of jealousy slowly fading, and it was replaced by some other, new emotion that kept coming up when Adrian was around. Warmth, and something more made me want to wrap my arms around Adrian and never let go. So I did that, I wrapped them around him, and held on.

"Sorry." I murmured into his neck.

He held on tight to me. "No need to be sorry, Sage. I like that jealous side of you. It makes you get all feisty and sexy."

I leaned my head back, looking up at him. "Sexy?"

He nodded slowly. "Very."

I was going to say something not so appropriate like, when I overheard someone yell 'Get a room' to us. And that moment was ruined.

"Let's get to that bar, hmm? Before everyone leaves us and we get lost." I pulled fully away, taking his hand once again.

"Lost? You and I, lost together doesn't seem like such a bad thing, just so you know Sage." Adrian smiled over at me. And although both of us would have rather stayed behind, we moved on and walked with the rest of the group to the bar. This bar turned out to be not as bad as I had thought initially. There was a guard at the door, at least. Though I found out from Adrian later that the guard was there to radio in if the police came by, so that underage drinking would stop before the police came through the doors. On the inside, there were several tables, couches, pool tables, and a dart board. Music was played loudly through the speakers, a band that I'd never heard of, though I really hadn't heard of a lot of modern music so it wasn't too much of a surprise.

There were also a lot of people. Most were from the movie theater, but there were a bunch of students too. Maybe I would get a chance to actually have some intellectual conversation tonight, being that it was a college campus and all. I mean, think of the knowledge that these people have picked up in lectures and labs.

"Want a drink?" My thoughts were suddenly interrupted. I looked up at Adrian, and glanced round us. We were apparently in line for the bar already. There were a couple of people ahead of us. I realized that most of the people in here were drinking, if not all of them.

"I'm not exactly twenty one here, Adrian." I replied.

He laughed. "Do I have to remind you that it doesn't matter in this place?"

"It matters to me though." I responded.

"Come on, I know you've drank before. I saw a champagne glass in your hand at Sonya's wedding."

"Champagne at a wedding is a bit different. It is out of respect more so than actually wanted to get drunk. Same goes for wine." I continued. "I think I want a diet coke."

He shook his head. "Your will power astounds me."

"Have you had anything today yet?" I asked, curious.

"Nope, one hundred percent sober, for now." We got to the front of the line, and Adrian ordered a diet coke for me, and a gin and tonic for himself. The bartender left to mix the drinks. Adrian looked over at me. "You sure you don't want something else? Maybe mix some vodka in that diet?"

I shook my head. "I'm fine."

The bartender handed us our drinks, and Adrian and I looked around for a spot. There was a small table available in the far corner, near a window. It had too bar stool seats, so we both headed for it. Once we got there, I saw that it had sticky liquid on it, but other than that it was as clean as I could hope for. I took a seat and had a sip of my drink.

I started thinking about Jill and the group, and felt for my phone in my pocket until I remembered that Adrian had taken it during the movie. "Adrian, can I have my phone back?"

"What for?" He asked, taking a sip of his drink.

"I need to make sure they haven't texted or called me."

His eyes narrowed. "If there was an issue, Jill would call me. And she hasn't yet, so it'll be fine. This is our night, remember?"

"Adrian. This is also my job. And I need to make sure that nothing is wrong. What if the Alchemists called me?"

"You would call back in the morning. Or make an excuse. Everything can wait one night you know." Adrian responded, sounding perfectly content with this decision.

I was about to complain even more, and possibly threaten him when some guy came up to our table. Adrian and I both looked up at the same time.

"Hey," He said. He had a beer in one hand. He had some type of teams baseball cap on, and was wearing jeans with a red polo shirt. His hair was longer, with bangs falling into his eyes. His eyes were brown, and were only directed towards me, ignoring Adrian completely. "Are you new around here? I haven't seen you before."

"I just came from that campus movie." I responded, confused as to why he was over here, talking to us. "I um, don't go here."

"No? That's too bad. I'm in business. Third year." He went on. "Oh, and my name is Carter. I don't think I caught yours."

I was about to introduce myself, when Adrian spoke up. "That's because she never said it, Carter. I'm Adrian by the way. I also go by The Boyfriend. Nice to meet you."

Carter stood up straighter and looked over at Adrian. "Boyfriend? Oh. Nice meeting you too."

"I bet." Adrian snapped.

It suddenly became very awkward. "So, um, Carter. What kind of business are you taking?"

He smiled over at me, refocusing on our conversation. "Accounting. I'm really good with numbers, and I know it sounds kind of nerdy, but I really love math. Always have."

"That doesn't sound nerdy at all. I like math too. History mostly though."

"You go to school at all?" He asked me.

Adrian's drink came down on the table, hard. Hard enough to make a loud noise that made me jump. Carter took a step back. "Sydney, how about we play darts? Or pool? Or just go somewhere. Get another drink or something?"

I frowned. "I still have half of mine left."

"I could really use a diet coke myself." Adrian responded, getting up. "I hate going alone. Join me, sweetie?"

Sweetie? I think I was too shocked by his affectionate nicknaming to actually decline. So I got up, and murmured a goodbye to Carter, and left with Adrian. When I say left, I mean that he placed his arm around my shoulders and pulled me off with him.

"What was that all about?" I asked him.

We got to a dart board and he picked off the darts. "On second thought, I'm not thirsty. I feel like throwing some things would be a better option for me at the moment."

"You didn't answer my questions." I crossed my arms.

He lined up a shot, and threw the dart across the air, where it landed in the outer circle. "I got mad. And upset. And jealous." He threw another one, getting close to the target.

"But why?" I asked, confused. "That guy seemed nice. I mean, all he did was come up and talk about school."

He laughed. "That wasn't all he was trying to do." He threw the third dart and it was just above the spot where the second one landed before. "He came over with the intent to hit on you. I could see his aura, it was red with lust. But I didn't need the aura to actually see what he wanted." He began to take the darts out. "And you just let it happen. The flirting."

"Flirting? He wasn't flirting. We was just being nice."

"Exactly." He looked over at me finally. "You honestly didn't know what he wanted?"

I sighed. "I thought he wanted to have an intellectual conversation about school and his classes. I actually hoped for it. I mean, not many guys come up to me and start flirting you know. That thought hadn't even occurred to me."

"Really?" Adrian asked, sounding puzzled. "You were completely oblivious to it all?"

I nodded. "I guess I was. And you didn't have to be such a jerk to him. He did seem nice."

Adrian came over to me, and held me close. His arms circled around my waist, and his face became close, leaving barely any space between us. "Nice, Sage?" He asked, his voice low. His lips suddenly went to mine, no warning at all. The fierceness of the kiss surprised me. It was like he was dying of thirst and I was his water. But it all ended too soon as he pulled back, his eyes pouring into mine. "I don't think you want nice."

"I don't?" I asked, my voice breaking.

He shook his head slightly. His lips moved to my cheek, then started to graze along the jawline. They moved on from there, leaving a hot trail in its path. Those lips spread upon my throat, making me gasp in pleasure. They stayed there for what seemed like forever, until I felt a graze of something hard. It took me a moment to realize they were his teeth, and when I did it took me another moment to remember what he was. What teeth meant for him.

"Adrian, stop." I huffed.

His mouth closed, and his drew back. His eyes had a fire to them that I hadn't seen before. He was breathing heavily, and so was I. What just happened? What was just about to happen?

"Are you alright?" I asked, my voice almost a whisper.

He took a moment to respond. "I think we should throw a couple of darts. And maybe not touch each other for a while."

My eyes grew wider. "Um, good idea. But I have never played darts before. Though it probably isn't too hard. I mean, I've thrown knives and things before, and did so through aiming. Not to mention using a bow and arrow to get a target."

He looked at me and smiled, then began to laugh. "I feel like this stuff shouldn't surprise me anymore, but it kind of does." He stepped back, fully letting go of me. "You go first. Just aim for the middle."

He handed over the darts and I held one in my hand. I felt its weight and figured out the best spot to hold it using my two fingers. I stood where Adrian had before, and moved my arm back, readying it to throw. Taking a breath, I aimed with my one eye, and threw.

I smiled. "I got the target."

"You sure did." Adrian said from beside me.

I looked over at him, and though we were not touching, my skin felt all prickly and warm just from his stare. I threw the next two darts and they came to the center too, though not precisely in the middle this time. I think knowing that Adrian was staring and that his presence made my heart race faster, made me aim a bit off. But I didn't care.

I checked the time. "We only have less than an hour left till I have to be back."

"I know." Adrian responded. "I was thinking we should leave. Now."

I gulped. "Um, yeah good idea. I need to um, go to the bathroom first. Quickly."

"I'll be waiting," he said.

With that, I rushed off to the ladies room. I went straight to the mirror. There were a couple of girls in here already, doing makeup and fixing their hair. I checked out my own hair, smoothing it down. It must have gotten tangled from the movie theater…I thought to myself. Luckily, I had a small brush in my bag, and was able to brush it out. It wasn't as perfect as before, it was a bit more wild than usual. Strands were out of place and it wasn't perfectly straight as it had been. But it looked good still. I checked my face next, and everything their still looked alright. Though my lips were kind of swollen. I was about to leave, feeling ready when I noticed me neck.

"Oh my god," I said out loud. I kind of forgot I was sharing a room with other girls, but it just came out. They glanced at me, but looked away shortly. I didn't care about them though, all I cared about at the moment was my neck. Or more like what was on my neck.

Adrian had given me another hickey. He had a few weeks ago at a party we crashed, but that one was nothing compared to this hickey. This one was double the size. And my hair would in no way be able to hide it. It was also redder than the last one, meaning it would probably last longer.

I ran out of the bathroom, and went to where Adrian was standing. "Look at my neck." I nearly screamed. Though the music in this place was so loud, it didn't matter if you screamed or not.

He looked. "Second one," he said, sounding happy about it. "I've been keeping track."

"Keeping track?" I asked, getting angrier. "You shouldn't be keeping track at all, there should have never been one in the first place. I mean look at it, it's not like I can hide it. It's huge."

"Just think back to that moment where you got it, and remember that happy time." He said, not taking this seriously at all. "Now let's get back to my car and I can give you a couple more."

"Adrian. No one knows about us. If they see that I have a hickey, how am I going to explain it?" I urged him to realize that this was not a good thing.

"Put make up on it. Where a scarf. Or just say that you had a fling with a random guy."

I took a deep breath. "Adrian. I cannot keep getting hickeys on my neck. Or anywhere that people can see them, I mean I will try and cover it up, but we have to be more careful."

He placed his forehead against mine. "I'm sorry. You're right. We do have to be careful. I promise to try to control myself more." He winked.

I rolled my eyes. "I am going to pretend you were being serious, Adrian. Now let's go."

His hand went to mine and we walked outside. The air was cooler now, though still not cold since it was Palm Springs and cold was not a word that was common around here.

We were about halfway to the car when Adrian spoke up again. "So where do you want them?"

"Want what?" I asked. "What are you talking about?"

"The hickeys. Where is a good spot?"

"Adrian, I said no hickeys. It's like evidence." I said firmly.

His hand went to my cheek, where my lily tattoo was. "You said no hickey's where people can see them. I can think of thousands of spots where people can't see them."

My skin blushed red at what he said. "I didn't mean…"

He smirked. "Let's just get to the car, and I can show you what I mean."

With my heart rate increasing and my face continuing to blush, I became brave. His words may have been new to me, and the subject matter may have been something that I wasn't the top student with, but I was willing to learn. To grow. To become a new Sydney Sage. I trusted Adrian. I trusted myself. So instead of saying no to him, I nodded my head and sauntered on to Adrian's car.


End file.
